The Toronto Raptors' decision to trade for Jakob Poeltl may have made sense at the time, but his ensuing contract extension and the fact that they parted with what became the No. 8 overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft led to this deal aging like milk.
The trade went from a massive Masai Ujiri mistake to an equally big mistake on behalf of the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Wolves acquired the pick from the San Antonio Spurs in order to select Kentucky point guard Rob Dillingham. After Dillingham was traded in his second season and has failed to latch on with another team, Toronto had the chance to bring this Poeltl trade dull circle by signing him.
Instead of signing Dillingham, the Raptors chose to use their final two-way slot to sign former Kansas star and New York Knicks reserve Kevin McCullar Jr. to fill their final spot. Dillingham returning to Toronto would be quite a bit of serendipity, but the Raptors chose to add an off-ball guard rather than the ball-dominant Dillingham.
Toronto Raptors pass on Rob Dillingham reunion depsite two-way spot
Dillingham was never going to be a great defender, but Minnesota believed that his creative offensive package and scoring skill would be enough to overcome those issues. Instead, Dillingham shot just 41% from the field across two seasons, and the Wolves sent him to the Chicago Bulls in the Ayo Dosunmu swap. The rebuilding Bulls had no interest in Dillingham.
The Raptors have historically been willing to take chances on former top picks who flamed out in their first pro destinations, and Dillingham would fit in nicely with that directive. Between that organizational philosophy, his tangential connection to the team via the Poeltl trade, and the needs of this roster, Toronto passing on him speaking volumes.
The Toronto Raptors were not interested in Rob Dillingham
Dillingham may have been a more natural fit for a Raptors team that is still looking for answers at the point guard spot. Immanuel Quickley continues to look like half a point guard and half an off-ball guard at times, and Jamal Shead's brilliant passing can't completly mask another year substandard scoring production.
The Raptors are also not in a position to throw things at the wall and see what sticks. Dillingham needs to go to a team willing to be patient, and Toronto is not that developmental environment anymore.
The only team that came out of this trade smelling like a rose was the Spurs, as they landed multiple future first-round picks from a Wolves squad that has gone all-in for the next few years in exchange for someone who the Raptors deemed inferior to someone who has scored 2.2 points in 25 games like McCullar.
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